ISO Bike to/from DCA

Have not done it for travel, though have always been intrigued by the idea.

Most recently, my wife had to change travel plans at the last minute and be at the airport very early so Metro wasn’t an option and she left our car in the garage. I biked down to pick it up later that day. Wayfinding is improved from the MVT but still lacking once you get close, and they definitely do NOT want you going into the garage with your bike.

Previously I returned a rental car there and biked home. It took me literally 20 minutes to find the trail and that was after asking someone at the Metro station.

I’m coming from NW DC – about 7.5 miles one way. That’s a hike on CaBi, especially with any kind of luggage, and I’d be hesitant to leave my bike locked up at the airport for multiple days.

I’ve biked to DCA for one trip to Kansas and two to Massachusetts.

Each time, I’ve had early morning flights which meant riding to the airport in the dark. Twice my returns were late at night. The entry and exit from the airport have felt spooky.

Parking amidst the skeletons of other bikes, and my own prior bad experiences elsewhere, have taught me to be supremely careful (and nervous) about DCA parking. I don’t have multiple bikes to choose from. But I use wheel-locks on front and back, two U-locks, and two cables when parking there.

Each time I’ve packed in my knapsack and tied a small extra bag to it (like a cloth grocery bag). My trips were all in the 3-to-6 day range.

I’ve done this only once, perhaps about five years ago. I don’t even remember my travel destination. It was a 1-2 day trip and I only carried a backpack, using the front rack. The most challenging part was navigating the walk between the CaBi station in Crystal City and the airport terminal.

I’ve biked to/from DCA maybe 3 times for personal travel: once I locked up my beater bike at the racks for a 3-4 days without issue, once (prior to the new CaBi station) I used the dockless option on an e-CaBi one way and took Metro back, and I’ve used the new CaBi station for one round-trip. From Mt Pleasant it takes 25-40 mins to reach the airport depending on time of day and choice of bike. Exercise is a great way to start a day of travel and the bone-dry cabin air takes care of any sweat very quickly!

Last time I did this, I wore my 40 liter backpack duffel and strapped a small backpack to the front of the e-CaBi. Worked fine, though the straps on the bike always seem too tight or too loose.

Not quite related, but my CaBi membership has made my beater bike mostly obsolete. I usually take CaBi for trips to/from Union Station, nights out on the town, etc, and the electric option is great when I’m tired or just want to sweat a little less before a train ride.

One can always pull a roller bag, I suppose

[ATTACH=CONFIG]25334[/ATTACH]

(This actually worked. I pulled this a little more than a mile, but on relatively smooth pavement, one could go farther.)

I’ve biked to DCA for personal travel at least 4 times, all pre-CaBi station installation. I used my beater bike, because a friend had a bike stolen there and the racks aren’t covered. For weekend trips, I carried everything in a backpack. For longer trips (4-5 days), I strapped a small duffel to my back rack:

[ATTACH=CONFIG]25335[/ATTACH]

Most of my riding to or from the airport has been in the dark, either because of an early departure or late return. I agree with wheels&wings that the entry and exit feel spooky. It would help if the lighting in the tunnel were better.

I’ve biked multiple times to the airport, both on a beater bike and just recently via a CaBi E-bike. I wasn’t charged an extra fee- I had no idea it was an exclusion area since there was a CaBi station there. I have an “overnight” bag that straps to my bike rack, which can fit 5-7 days of clothing (it fit awkwardly on both the CaBi basket & bucket).

The trickiest part for me is navigating the helmet- I don’t want to leave it strapped to my bike & it’s awkward to bring with me. I once made the mistake of putting it in my roller carry-on, which got gate-checked & then picked up with the regular luggage & in the mean time was tossed around like pizza dough. Never again!

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Late entry, but I biked at least twice a week to & from DCA for a 6 month period when I had a small construction project there. Sometimes it was on my way into work to DC and sometimes it was to & from my office in DC. For those short trips, I usually used my beater single speed I kept at the office for short rides across the mall. I usually locked it to the bike racks that used to be on either end of the terminal on the lower level by baggage claim as this was more convenient. I think they probably got rid of these. For overnight work or day flights to NY, I would usually park the bike at the racks by the metro station entry as these have video surveillance on them. I never parked any of my bikes at the bike boneyard shown in others’ photos. There are also a couple of obscure bike racks near the pet relief areas if you can find them.